Man is suspected of setting two houses on fire, about 10 blocks apart

6:58 AM,
Dec. 4, 2012

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Written by

Jess Rollins
JROLLINS@NEWS-LEADER.COM

A man suspected of setting fires inside two Springfield houses Monday morning is believed to be a relative of the homeowners and suffering from a mental illness.

The man, in his 20s, was taken to an area hospital for a mental evaluation after police detained him near one of the blazes, which occurred about 10 blocks from each other in residential areas west of U.S. 65.

Springfield firefighters were alerted to the first fire, on Valley View Avenue, about 8 a.m. A woman trapped on the second floor called 911 and stuffed towels underneath the door to protect herself from smoke, said Assistant Fire ...